Way Back To Love
by SpyKid18
Summary: Post S3.  "It's always been him, hasn't it?"  Veronica and Logan find their way back to each other.  LoVe
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is most likely the start to a multichapter fic. So-yay! Read on then let me know what you think :D**

Way Back To Love: Part I

He doesn't say a word on the walk back to his dorm and for once she doesn't know what to say, so she keeps quiet. Her stomach curls uncomfortably because the silence is so uncharacteristic of their relationship, as is the utter lack of glances that he steals in the silence. She knew he tried to be discreet, but she always caught him looking. Whether they were studying together or spending time with friends. He was always looking.

He opens the door to his room and waits for her to walk in first. _Always the gentleman_, she thinks_, even with purple bruises_. She moves straight to his bed and sits down, the silence now deafening as he drops down onto the edge of the bed and stares at the floor.

"Piz-"

"It's always been him," he says, finally looking at her. "Hasn't it?"

"You don't understand," she tells him, thinking that _she_ doesn't really understand, either. There is so much about her and Logan that she doesn't understand. So much that just _is_.

"You know, I thought things would be okay since he was with Parker. They were happy. We…" he trails off.

"We were happy Piz," she tells him. "Happy enough."

He shakes his head, his body flinching when she moves toward him on the bed. Gently she lays a hand on his arm and tells him, "I'm sorry he went after you, Piz. He's protective, stupidly so."

"Yeah, I got that after the first few punches."

"Look, I'm not happy about what he did. It was ridiculous, and completely unfounded-"

"No, it wasn't," Piz interrupts, looking over at her. "If I were him, I would have done the same thing."

"Beat yourself up?" she jokes awkwardly, futilely hoping to lighten the mood. Piz gives her a fraction of a smile and shakes his head. "This isn't going to work, Veronica."

"Piz-"

"And it has nothing to do with me being in New York or you going to Washington. I can't compete with what you two have. There's all this history between you two."

"I like you, Piz," she offers softly, her words sounding like an apology. A sad grin tugs at his mouth as he replies, "But you love him."

She can see the fraction of hope in Piz's eyes that she will fight him. Although most of him is resigned to the fact that he will always be second best, there is a part of him that still hopes they have a chance. The longer she hesitates, the darker his eyes become, but she can't fight him. She knows he's right.

Switching gears, Piz says, "If nothing else, dating you has given me some street cred, right? I was in a very public fight. Should boost my points with other girls."

"Piz, I'm so sorry."

"It happens," he says with a shrug. "You don't always win the girl."

She leans forward and kisses him softly on the cheek. "You're a good guy, Piz."

"Well that's no good," he retorts. "The good guys always lose."

She chuckles softly and reminds him, "Not always."

"Well, I appreciate your vote of confidence on my part. Now, if you don't mind I think I need a little time by myself. A little guitar. A little beer."

She nods and says, "Yeah, of course. I'll go."

As she leaves he says, "Thanks for giving me a few months, Veronica. They were nice."

His words hit her hard and the final bit of guilt kicks in. Despite their ending, he had been good to her. Smiling sadly she agrees, "Yeah, they were."

* * *

Piz had set her free and with the pity party he was most definitely conducting by himself in his dorm room, she thinks it only fair to him that she makes his sacrifice worthwhile.

_I have been here way too often in the past few days_, Veronica thinks as she walks into the lobby of the Neptune Grand. She moves smoothly to the elevators and presses the button to go up. Seconds later the doors open and she steps in, pressing the button for the top floor. The ride seems longer than she remembers, which she logically accredits to her nerves. What if Logan had moved on? She had been pretty adamant in her rejection of him, and she was pretty sure he had done enough pining and wallowing this year to last him for several subsequent breakups.

She makes herself knock at his door and holds her breath when she hears a click and the door swings open.

"Veronica!" Dick enthuses, leaning on the doorframe. "What is your little blonde self doing here?"

"Is Logan here?"

"Nope, he's out."

She frowns and says, "Oh, then I guess-"

"_I_ guess you will just come in here and wait for him," Dick suggests jovially, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the penthouse. "Just so happens, I need a partner for Mario Kart. You game, Ronnie?"

The knowledge that Logan will return soon leads her to shrug and say, "Sure, why not?"

* * *

Logan walks into the penthouse, stopping short when he sees Veronica and Dick sitting on the couch playing Mario Kart. His first thought is, _why is Veronica here?_ Closely followed by, _When did she get so good at Mario Kart?_

"Dude, Ronnie is like totally kicking my ass at this!" Dick calls out, shaking his head. "Who would've known she had some mad Xbox skills?"

"I'm a woman of many trades," Veronica answers easily.

"And I don't like losing," Dick retorts. He stands up and points at Logan with the controller. "Time to suit up, my man. Kick her butt, okay?"

Logan chuckles, stepping forward and taking the controller from his hand. He sits beside Veronica, glancing over at her warily. "So, what are you doing here?"

"You really shouldn't have beaten up that guy. He's in with the Sarokins."

"He was being a jack ass," Logan says with a shrug. "And having previously been a jack ass, I felt it had to be addressed."

She smiles slightly and says, "Well, thank you. You kept me from using my tazer on him."

A comfortable silence falls between them as the game begins. Their eyes are on the screen, their cars zooming down the multicolored roads, but their attention is on the space between them on the couch.

"Parker and I broke up," he says suddenly, voice soft.

Eyes not leaving the screen, Veronica tells him, "Piz and I broke up."

Both look toward each other at the same time and their lips pull into similar sheepish grins as they avert their eyes. Dick returns to the room and takes a look at the score. "Logan, dude, what the hell? You're losing!" He plops himself on the armrest beside Veronica and complains, "How is a chick so good at this?"

"And I win," Veronica says with a grin, dropping the controller into her lap. "Good game."

"Unbelievable," Dick gripes. "Move over, Ronnie."

Without warning Dick squeezes in beside Veronica on the couch, shoving her toward Logan. Distance now closed, Veronica glances over at Logan, inhaling sharply at the sudden closeness.

"We should order some food," Dick announces. "And you, Ronnie, are not leaving until you have suffered the wrath of the Dickster beating you."

"Well, Dickster, I'll take you up on that. But you're paying for my burger."

Dick snorts and says, "Fine, Logan's tab picks up everything anyway! I'll go make a call."

Dick pulls himself from the couch and wanders over to the telephone. There is now an entire cushion free of bodies, but Veronica doesn't move. Her arm brushes against Logan's as she tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. He glances over at her and asks, "You really staying?"

"I think the Dickster has made my presence mandatory," she answers.

"You don't have to if you don't want to."

She looks over at him and says, "I want to, okay?"

He smiles softly. "Okay."

**A/N: So, you guys like?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: New chapter! It's a little angsty-but nothing too bad. Hope you enjoy!**

Different, But The Same

It's as if nothing has changed. Veronica nearly has to pinch herself, provide a reminder that she really had gone to his apartment and made the best subtle-grand gesture she could, because Logan is acting as if nothing had happened. No, actually, he talks to her _more_. That is the only difference. He _talks_ to her more, but he never actually says anything. It's all jokes and innuendo, which in general suits her just fine, but she wants more. She had gone to him. She had stayed. She wanted more.

If she craves a change, though, she finds it in Piz. He hardly looks at her now, barely mumbles three words her way before stealing away to whatever corner he sulks in.

After Piz's latest escape, Veronica remarks, "I thought we could still be friends."

Wallace is beside her in the cafeteria and he shakes his head, dragging a fry through some ketchup and dropping it in his mouth. "That ain't how it works, Veronica," he says, mouth full. "You dumped the guy."

She laughs in surprise, a bit indignant at his response, and says, "I didn't break up with him."

"Fine," he relents. "But you were in love with your ex. Same difference, V."

"I didn't mean to hurt him," she says in a low voice. "He was good to me."

"How's Logan?" Wallce asks, shifting the conversation slightly. "You guys seem to be getting along."

"We are," she agrees. "We're-I don't know-friends?" She frowns and grabs a fry off his plate, pushing it in her mouth morosely.

"You sound happy," Wallace mumbles, pushing his plate toward her. "Here, you need them more than I do."

"I'm fine," Veronica says in a rather unconvincing tone. "Really, I mean, I didn't expect anything. I _can't_, not really, not with him."  
"Have you talked to him?"

She rolls her eyes and answers, "Yes Wallace, I have talked with him."

"No, I mean actually have a talk. Not dance around stuff like you guys usually did."

And here she was thinking that her and Logan's communication problem was only apparent to her. "You're too insightful for your own good, Wallace."

* * *

"_Verrrronica_," Logan trills, falling in step beside her as she walks to her next class. She looks up at him and asks, "Yes?"

"How are you?"

She shrugs. "Still kickin'."

"You should drop by my place today," he says casually. A chill runs down her spine and she forces nonchalance in her voice when she asks, "Why?"

She figures this won't segue way directly into a declaration of love, but she hardly anticipated Logan's response of, "Dick wants a Mario Kart rematch."

"Oh," she breathes out. "Um, yeah, I'll drop by."

Her voice sounds strange and he looks at her oddly. "You okay?"

"Yeah, perfect," she chirps. "Why wouldn't I be? I'm perfectly fine. Tip top shape, in fact."

"Veronica-"

"And here is my class," she says, turning toward him briefly. "I will be by later to see _Dick_." The emphasis on that last name is not lost on Logan and he stares after her as she slips into the classroom, wondering just what it is he did wrong this time.

* * *

She didn't want to go, but knowing Dick he would badger Logan to badger her until she finally dragged herself over to her place. And that would involve Logan inviting her over to his place again for reasons not including him. And he would think, again, that this is fine.

So, she really goes for her own sanity.

"Ronnie!" Dick says jovially when he finds her in the doorway. He pulls her in and says, "I see you got my message."

"Uh, yeah, I did."

"Alright, prepare to be trounced," he says, pointing to the couch. "Sit down. There is domination that needs to go down."

Veronica finds it hard to hold on to her irate mood with Dick being so-well, Dick-like-and pads over to the couch, reaching for the controller. Dick makes some noise and plucks it from her as he says, "Not happening, Ronnie, that's my lucky controller."

"Your lucky controller?" she asks with a small grin. "You do realize that luck doesn't exist. It's just a manmade convention to make us feel better that so much is out of our control."

"Nah, this is totally in my control," he says easily. "I've been practicing. Hours, Ronnie."

"It's a wonder you get anything else done," she says with mock sincerity. "Wait, I remember, you don't do anything else."

"Laugh all you want," he says. "But this game is going to be epic. My newly acquired skills are just that. Epic."

"Eighteen years old and Mario Kart extraordinaire," she says slowly with feigned reverence. "The job offers are just going to pour in."

She rolls her eyes, picking up the other controller. She really doesn't care if she beats him, but his blowhard exclamations of his gaming proweress brings out her competitive side. She is entirely focused, bringing in high scores while Dick lags behind, until the door opens.

"Shit," she mumbles, driving her car into a wall and careening into a trap. Dick laughs jovially and yells, "Distract her more, Logan!"

"Do that you meet my taser," she bites out, shooting Logan a glare. If he has to upset her by clearly ignoring what had passed between them, fine, she could handle that. But he has no right to undermine her Mario Kart skills.

Somewhere, Veronica registers that her logic is faulty.

_I am mad at him, therefore I don't give a damn,_ she thinks.

Logan takes the seat beside her and she glances over at him, telepathically trying to tell him to get the hell away. This comes to no avail. He only shakes his head and says, "Damn Veronica, this is not your game."

"It was before you got here," she says sourly.

"Bitter much?"

She whips her head to his and angrily shoots back, "Jack ass much? Look, if you can't play nice then how about you just leave?"

He's taken aback by the vehemence in her voice and sputters, "I live here."

"I don't care. You're being a jack ass."

He knows something is off and thinks of what she had said to him earlier in the day, before she slipped into that class of hers. She is clearly still pissed over that. Whatever _that_ is, he has no clue.

"Dick," Logan says quickly, "we're out of beer. Go get some."

"Dude, middle of the game," Dick spells out.

Mirroring his tone Logan says, "Dude, no beer." Dick sighs and looks over at his friend. Logan shifts his eyes obviously over toward Veronica and after a moment Dick's eyes widen and he nods his head in understanding. "Yeah," he says. "_Beer_."

Veronica shakes her head in irritation. "You two are ridiculous." She turns to Logan. "If you want to talk to me then just talk to me!"

"And that is my cue to leave," Dick says, tossing the controller on the couch. "Discussions make me anxious."

Both are silent as Dick makes his way out of the penthouse. Veronica is fuming, crossing her arms tightly over her chest, while Logan is trying to gauge how angry Veronica will become when he finally speaks.

"I don't get why you're mad at me," Logan says.

"Oh, I don't know," she answers hotly. "Maybe because I came here after I broke up with Piz and I thought we had a-I don't know-a moment? And then you act as if nothing happened!"

He stares at her as she continues to rail, and thinks that somehow he has managed to mess everything up. Of course he had realized that something had happened between them. He had felt it, the energy passing between them. The glances, too. He thought she would need time, though. He knew she cared about Piz and figured she would need some distance before he attempted to mend their constantly on the fritz relationship.

She is done talking and is staring at him, waiting for some response. He's grasping at straws, really. He has no idea what to say. He doesn't know how to make this right. He never had.

"Come with me to South America," he says suddenly.

"What? Your-your trip with Dick?"

"He's not-"

"Your trip with _Parker_?" He sees the error of his ways and swears under his breath. "You invite me to the trip you were going to take with your ex-girlfriend? Wow, good job Logan. Make me feel even shittier."

"Hey, I'm trying here," he shoots back. "I'm-I'm really trying."

"Well, try harder."

He reaches forward impulsively and grabs onto her waist, pulling her toward him. He expects her to fight back, but is surprised when her hands lay lightly on his arms. His fingers trace the curve of her cheek and she sighs, "I didn't mean like this, Logan."

He ignores her and presses his forehead to hers. "I don't know what you want."

"I want you to _talk_ to me."

"Isn't that what I've been doing? I've been trying to be your friend. Trying to act like nothing-"

"Nothing happened," she finishes. "Yeah, I know."

"Tell me what you want and I will do it." He needs to hear it from her because part of him still thinks that she needs time but if she says the word, he'll do it. If she gives a little he will give her everything he has.

"I don't want to be your friend." Her words would have stung if her hands hadn't slid behind his neck. He deftly slips his hand just under the hem of her shirt and murmurs, "I don't want to be your friend, either."

"So, what do we do?"

"We'll take it one day at a time," he says.

"And then?"

He smiles softly and kisses the tip of her nose lightly. "And then we just keep going. You need to stop over-thinking this, Veronica."

"No, _this_ is something that deserves over-thinking." She leans into him. "We're not exactly easy."

"We wouldn't be us if we were."

He leans in to kiss her, but is interrupted by a loud knocking at the door. He shakes his head in irritation, but can't help but smile slightly when he hears Dick yell, "Dude, can I come in with the beer yet?"

"He can come in," she says, moving away from his embrace. "And I should go. Dad'll expect me home for dinner soon. You know, the woman has to make the Hamburger Helper."

He nods, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "So, um, are we alright?"

They made progress, that much she is sure of. Past that, she doesn't have a clue. "I'll see you later, Logan."

"I'm calling you tonight," he says to her retreating back. She looks back at him and smiles slightly before replying, "Well, then I will be expecting a call."

She opens the door and Dick's wide smile dims as he looks at both her and Logan. "Clothes intact," he notes, shaking his head. "I went on that beer run for nothing."

Veronica chuckles. "See you later, Dick."

When she leaves, Dick looks at Logan and asks, "So, what happened?"

Logan is wondering much the same thing, but murmurs, "I think we're dating."

**A/N: So.. thoughts? Next chapter will delve further into Veronica and Logan trying to sort through their tricky relationship. And their might be some South America action thrown in there. And Dick, of course. And possibly some Mac. So...let me know what you thought! New chapter will be on its way soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: New chapter! It's sort of a filler to lead to the next chapter. It basically glosses over the rest of the semester, up to summer. I hope it's not too difficult to follow. Enjoy!**

**Fresh Start**

Logan yielded to the fact that he would never fully understand Veronica Mars a long time ago. He believed the exact moment had been at that poker game, as she expertly shuffled the cards with an always devious grin. She was an enigma and as well as he knew her, understood her, there would always be grey area. He finds himself having to check this understanding when she approaches him the last week of class and says, "I'll go to South America with you."

He looks down at her with a rather unbecoming look of bewilderment. She knows it will take him a minute to process, to catch up with her quick, often unruly trains of thought, and eventually they become elbow-to-elbow and he says, "Let me get this straight, you want to go on the trip that I had planned with Dick and Parker?"

She frowns. "When you put it that way it sounds like such a terrible idea."

"No," he says immediately, becoming frustrated when her lips pull into that goading smile of hers. She knows she is making him think in circles, tripping up over all the landmines their relationship invariably plants. "If you want to go, then we'll go."

"Good," she says, slipping her hand in his. "I want to go. We need time together, just the two of us."

"So we can _talk_?" he asks warily, hating that word. He finds comfort in the drooping of her lips, knowing full well that she hates it as much as him. She is more adamant on them doing it, though. Him, well, he could easily gloss over the talking thing and resume their fiery relationship. They'd do just fine, he thinks. Well, until the fire consumed them, as it always did.

Maybe talking isn't such a bad idea.

"We won't talk the entire time," she offers as condolence. "But yes, a primary function of the trip will be to talk."

"Somehow, I now wish this semester would go on and on," Logan muses, laughing when she hits his arm. "What? You don't want to talk anymore than I do!"

"We are doomed," she laments dramatically.

"Alright, gotta run to a meeting," Logan says, dropping a kiss to her lips. She cocks her head to the side and remarks, "A meeting? That would mean you are actually involved in something scholastic. Spill."

"Not really a school meeting," Logan explains quickly. "I'm meeting Mac to talk about our business venture."

"Oh," she breathes out, nodding. "The ass website?"

"You make it sound so upstanding."

She laughs and squeezes his hand before saying, "Alright, go spend time with my friend. I will just be on my lonesome, contemplating world hunger."

"Lofty goals for your solitude, Mars."

"I always strive for the best. Tell my friend I say hello."

"Will do."

* * *

The semester came to a close and students release a communal sigh of relief. The semester had been a difficult one, particularly for Veronica Mars and company. She suffered through two relatively painful break-ups. Her father lost his bid for sheriff. And then there were all the troubles of organized crime. Her constant worry that Logan would end up with a bullet in his head.

Needless to say, all embraced the implicit call for a fresh start.

"I can't believe that you, Veronica Mars, are vacationing," Wallace says, laughing at the ludicrous nature of it all. She rolls her eyes and tells him, "It's not vacationing, Wallce."

"A trip to South America? I call that vacationing."

"The point of the trip is for Logan and I to basically sort through all the unresolved crap between us. Hardly a vacation."

"I don't even want to think of all the nasty stuff you'll be doing in between all that resolving."

Veronica smirks. "Then don't."

"You better come back happy," Wallace warns. "Both of you. I can't stand all of that brooding crap Logan has going on half the time. Your brooding too, actually."

"I do not brood," Veronica retorts, lifting her chin slightly. "I am a woman. I sulk."

"Whatever it is, it ain't pretty."

"Believe it or not, Logan and I are not one step away from combusting," Veronica assures him. He gives her a look that says he needs more convincing. "And that is all I am saying on the issue. Haven't I gone all girl on you enough this semester?"

"True," he admits. "Let's start the summer of nicely."

"Exactly."

* * *

Mac just finished some software downloads and brings them to the Neptune Grand to show Logan. She takes the elevator up to the penthouse and walks over to the door, knocking succinctly as she tucks a lock of hair behind her ear. She hears a loud crashing noise and moves her head inquisitively as the door opens to reveal a rather disheveled Dick Casablancas.

"Hi, is Logan here?"

"No, uh, he's not. Him and Veronica left for the big S.A., remember?" She had not, in fact, remembered but quickly recalls the conversation her and Veronica had shared just last night.

"I'm an idiot," she breathes out. "Okay, um, I'll be going then."

"Alrighty." He starts to close the door, but she stops him when something catches her eye behind him. "Everything okay in there?" she asks.

"Yup, totally okay." She peeks over his shoulder and her eyes skate over the room. There are various bottles of liquor strewn across the couch, one broken plate whose shards of ceramic are scattered unceremoniously on the ground.

"You sure about that?"

"Nosy today, aren't you Mac Attack?"

"No more than usual," she answers with a quick grin. His lips tug into something resembling a smile but then they droop back down. "You want to come in?" he asks.

Quality time with Dick hardly appealed to her, but she nods her head anyway and steps past him into the room. Despite the liquor, she notes that there isn't a trace of alcohol on his breath. _Guess I got here just in time,_ she thinks.

She glances at the broken dish and has no idea what to think of that.

"You having a party?" she asks, casually gesturing toward the bottles of liquor. He shakes his head and answers, "Nope." She clasps her hands behind her back. "You want any?"

"No," she says, beginning to rock on her feet nervously. This is weird. Just the two of them in the room, totally weird. She looks again at the broken shards of ceramic and he says, "I dropped it."

"Must have dropped it pretty hard."

"Anything is possible after a chat with Daddy Dearest," he says, voice uncharacteristically gloomy. "He's going to jail, you know."

"I did," she says with a small nod. Logan had told her about it before. Bad blood between father and son, she had heard. When she thought about it, there was a lot of bad blood in that family.

"Was going to spend his last days as a _free man_ with me. I can't stand to look at him, though. Thought I could, but…"

"You don't have to tell me," she says in a small voice. She doesn't need an explanation. She understands without one.

"Anyway, now that I'm effectively abandoning my father I have all the time in the world."

"That's good?" she asks gingerly, regarding Dick as a bit of a loose canon. She feels relief flood her system as his face breaks into a genuine, albeit hesitant, grin and he answers, "Yeah, it is. You know, it really is."

"Any grand plans?"

His gaze falls directly on her and she feels her cheeks flush as he doesn't look away after a generally held appropriate amount of time to stare at a person. And after another painful, awkward moment, he is still staring. Finally he speaks and asks, "What are your feelings on South America?"

**A/N: You can probably see where this is going...**

** Review! Yay.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: South America time!**

Good Talk

Veronica is a big fan of South America. In fact, she pretty much enjoys everything about it. She likes staying up until the early morning with Logan, and sleeping until past noon. She likes the constant sunshine and hair-curling humidity. The lazy pace of life that allows them to never leave bed. She even likes the familiar soreness and constant state of mess her hair seemed to gravitate toward (both Logan's fault).

They have yet to talk, but even this she can overlook in the absolute utopian bliss that she is experiencing. _We can talk later_, she keeps telling herself. And every time she decides that talking is very, _very_ necessary Logan reacts in the way that he does best and she loses all ability to speak coherently.

Still, she is fine with it all. There is no one to call her out on the still vast expanse of non-communication stretching between them, and there is so much else going on that she barely notices the absence. This all changes the afternoon that Dick barges into their room, however, Mac on his heels.

"Dick!" Logan yells, covering a very naked Veronica with the sheet. "What the hell?"

"Hey Ronnie," Dick says with a wide grin. "Cute tush."

"I hate you," Veronica spits from under the cover. "I thought you were spending time with your dad."

"Turns out I'm not too big a fan of my pop," Dick says. "So I decided to reclaim my spot on this vacay. And then Mac here stopped by to drop something off for Logan and I convinced her to come with!"

"You hate sunshine," Veronica says to Mac, covers pulled up under her chin. "And the salt water and general cheer. You hate it!"

Mac shrugs and says, "The kid is persuasive."

"Out," Logan says, shooing them away with his hand. "Both of you-out now."

"You gonna come with us to dinner?" Dick asks, clasping his fingers and raising his hands over his head as he stretches.

"Let us get some clothes on and then yes, we will join you."

"Awesome sauce," Dick says, nodding his head hapilly. "Dress yourselves and then let's get some grub. I'm hungry."

"Why are they here?" Veronica grumbles when they leave, burrowing her head into his chest. He kisses the side of her head and says, "No idea."

"This means we can't be naked all the time," she complains. "And Mac will make us talk."

"But you want to talk."

"Not when we could be doing so many other, wonderful South American things."

He chuckles and sits up, bringing him with her. "We can still do those wonderful South American things. We'll kick them out of the villa."

"We can't do that," she chides gently. "We will have to behave ourselves."

Logan frowns. "This was so much better before they came came."

"Amen, brother."

* * *

"You look unhappy," Mac notes, walking with Veronica as they head toward their dinner location. The boys are walking ahead of them, Dick gesturing excitedly as he went on about something that seemed to interest Logan little. "Sorry for bombing your vacation."

"No, it's not you guys," Veronica sighs. "It's just, now we have to talk."

"I thought that was the point of this vacation."

"Yeah, it was."

"And you want to talk."

"Yes," Veronica says shortly. "As everyone keeps pointing out, I do indeed want to talk. But I want to talk in theory. In execution, not so much."

"Veronica-"

"Both of us have some serious issues," she admits, chewing on her bottom lip. "This talk isn't exactly going to be easy."

"Well, just think about all the make-up sex you can have after," Mac offers optimistically. Veronica's eyes brighten for a moment and Mac presses, "See! Silver lining, my friend."

"So, you came with Dick?" Veronica says, shifting gears relatively smoothly in the conversation.

"Yup."

"What's up with that? I know you, and you are not easily persuaded to do anything."

"He's not a bad guy," Mac answers. "When you get to know him, he's actually sort of cool."

"Are you two, like, bonding?"

"Maybe," Mac answers, mulling over the answer for a bit. Her face changes several time from confusion, to acceptance, and back. Finally she says, "We understand each other, at least where Cassidy is concerned. We both loved him and lost him." Veronica's eyes darken at the mention of the younger Casablancas but she holds her tongue. "Anyway, he's cool."

"Well, I'm glad you think that."

Mac catches the undercurrent to Veronica's statement and warns, "Don't go all Yente on me."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Veronica says innocently. "Besides, I have enough relationship problems to deal with myself."

"Yes you do," Mac agrees.

* * *

They return from dinner and Dick easily convinces all of them that since it is Friday night, it is only natural for them to delve straight into a drinking game. Veronica is the only one who shows slight hesitance, thinking of the talk that it is becoming more and more likely her and Logan will share tomorrow. She does not want to have a hangover for that.

She is convinced, though, and thinks to herself that Dick happens to be quite persuasive. Maybe he does have employable skills, after all. They're sitting on the ground, a near empty bottle of rum at the center. All are beyond the point of actually playing games because none of them would be able to remember the rules.

"This was a bad idea," Veronica slurs, leaning her head heavily on Logan's shoulder. "You know I get bad hangovers."

"Water and aspirin," Logan answers in a deceivingly coherent voice, considering he had twice as many shots as Veronica. "You'll be golden as good, babe."

She giggles at his misuse of the phrase and corrects, "Good as golden."

"Huh?"

"You mean good as golden."

"No, you're drunk."

She laughs and reaches up to poke his nose. "_You_ are drunk."

"As I should be!" he answers proudly. "I had seven-eight shots. You had, like, two."

"Nuh uh," she refutes, shaking her head. "I had _way_ more than two."

"I think you had three," Mac interjects, reaching for the bottle and pouring herself another. Before she hits it back she mocks, "Lightweight."

Dick watches Mac with barely concealed awe, his jaw slack and dropped into a slight _o_ shape. Mac grins and hands him the bottle. "You're kind of cool, Mac," he says.

"So are you."

"For someone with so much game, he is _really_ bad at flirting," Veronica says to Logan.

"I think he's actually being genuine."

Veronica turns her attention to Mac and Dick and breathes out, "Oh, wow."

* * *

The next morning Veronica and Logan drag themselves to a local diner to have breakfast. Both of their eyes are swollen with hangovers and they don't attempt to speak until copious amounts of coffee and eggs are ingested. Finally, after a long spell of no talking, Logan sighs and says, "Alright, let's do this."

She looks at him in surprise. She had thought that she would be the one to press them toward the talk and yet he brought it up. She smiles a bit and thinks, _we're maturing._

"Figure I can't be in anymore physical pain than I am right now," Logan says, taking a long sip of coffee. "So, lay it on me. Let's talk."

She nods and attempts to suggest a starting point. She opens her mouth and then closes it, realizing relatively quickly that she has no idea where to start. "Um, well…"

"Don't tell me you can't think of anything to talk about."

"My brain isn't functioning yet," she says. "It's too early."

"It's two in the afternoon."

"Fine, I don't trust you," she says. She realizes that she has never said this aloud and is somewhat surprised to hear it come out of her mouth. Logan looks equally surprised and pauses for a whole ten seconds (she counts) before saying, "Well I guess we're going to start at a sprint."

"I know that you love me-"

"I do."

"And that you never want to hurt me-"

"I don't."

"Logan," she sighs. "This will be a lot easier if you don't interrupt me every other sentence."

"Sorry."

"I know all of that, but I have a hard time forgiving you for what you did with Madison."

"I was drunk," he interjects. "And have regretted it ever since."

"I know that," she says. "I know. And the happening is not even what really bothers me. I mean, you can't take it back. What bothers me is that you didn't tell me about it. Even when we were back together and I asked you if you had been with other people, you didn't say a word."

"I didn't want to hurt you."

Veronica makes a noise similar to a horse snorting and takes an agitated stab at her plate of food. "People need to stop worrying about my damn feelings all the time. Because _all_ they do is make everything worse!"

"Veronica-"

"I would rather know then have you keep it from me. Would I have been upset? You bet. But I want to know!"

"So, we would have been fine if I told you."

"No," she says immediately, shaking her head. "No, we wouldn't have. But we could have worked through it. You just had to tell me."

"So, full disclosure," he says slowly, unsure if he is heading in the right direction. He smiles in relief when she nods her head and says, "Exactly. Alright, um, your turn."

"You mean I actually get to have a role in this talk?"

"Logan."

"Okay, _you_ need to not put yourself in danger when you don't have to. I know you help your dad out, but he would not want you in half the situations you put yourself in. If you have to do something risky, I want you to take either me or Wallace with you."

"A babysitter?" she asks sharply, scrunching her nose.

"No, someone to save your ass. I've seen the situations you get yourself into, Veronica. I know you think you're invincible, but you're not. And you're tiny."

"My tiny-ness has gotten me out of a lot of sticky situations," she retorts.

"Veronica-"

"Okay," she relents. "I-I will take you with me if I am doing anything that I see being dangerous."

"And I will not keep anything from you," he says, nodding slowly.

"Okay," she agrees. They don't say anything for a moment and then both reach for their coffee at the same time. Nearly in synch, they take a sip and return the mug to the table.

"Good talk?" Logan asks warily.

There is still more to get through. And they have a lot of still unresolved issues. But they made progress. "Yeah, good talk."

**A/N: So, talk part one. You like?**


End file.
